Zane Middle School standing fidget desk

The Stand Up Fidget Desk is a project built by students from the Engineering 215 design course from the Environmental Resources Engineering major at Humboldt State University. The project entails designing a stand up fidget desk that will effectively help middle schoolers with the learning disability ADHD stay focused in the classroom. The desk will be utilized by approximately 10 students during a 7-hour school day, 5 days a week. The client for this project is Celia Boomer teacher at Zane Middle School located in Eureka California. The desk will be adjustable so that it accommodates students of different heights. The team Hardworking Procrastinators will strategically place different types of fidgeting tools on the desk to achieve the primary goal of the project, helping students stay focused.

The stand up fidget desk created by team Hardworking Procrastinators in spring 2017 is a learning device that will be used in Celia Boomer's classroom at Zane Middle School. The Stand up fidget desk will aid middle schoolers with the learning disability ADHD, by providing a resource to help them stay focused in the classroom. Kids with ADHD are best known for not being able to sit still, especially in a place like a classroom where it is mandatory to do so. To decide what fidgeting components were implemented on the desk, team Hardworking Procrastinators consisting of Kaden Law, Sarah Parr, Gilberto Sandoval, and Madison Whitlow-Hewett did extensive research on the topic of ADHD and how fidgeting helps kinesthetic learners such as kids with ADHD increase their focus in the classroom. Celia Boomer, the client has already purchased a handful of fidget cubes, but the stand up fidget desk will do one better.

Objective: To create a stand up desk that featured silent fidget components to help students with ADHD stay focused during class without disrupting other students.

Criteria Definition

The following criteria played a pivotal role in the decision process:

Fidgetability: Mechanisms that allow students to fidget silently while maintaining focus must be efficiently incorporated into the desk. The desk must contain multiple fidgeting apparatus that engage the students hands and feet.

Aesthetics: The desk must be appealing to both faculty and students while retaining a similar aesthetic to the other desks so that it matches the overall design of the classroom. The desk should not stand out and look as if it could fit in a professional workplace. All objects incorporated into the desk must look as if they belong there and function with ease.

Cost: This is the amount of money, time, and effort that will be spent on this project. The financial cost cannot exceed the budget of 400 USD. Time and effort will vary by person.

Safety: All elements of the desk must be intact and must not pose any hazards for the students. The desk’s corners must be rounded so that the potential risks involved with sharp corners are minimized. The desk must remain balanced when students exert force on a certain side to prevent tipping of the desk and possible injuries. The fidget tools incorporated into the desk must not come off with ease as kids can put them in their mouth which then creates a choking hazard.

Durability: This is the overall abuse that this desk will be able to endure. The desk must retain its structural integrity while accommodating over ten students per day over the next school year. The fidgeting tools as well as the mechanism that will enable the desk to be easily adjusted to different heights should be built to withstand constant use and allow for easy repairs if needed.

After testing the adjustability of the desk, we discovered that it takes two people to raise and lower the height. We would have liked it to have been easier to adjust, but this is what we have to work with. You need one person to lift and hold the desk and a second person to move the bolts to the new hole. The pencil catcher works just fine and so does moving the angle of the desk surface.

The Fidget Toys:

The toys work perfectly, they are fun to play with and are not too distracting sound-wise. They are not too colorful but do match the school colors and the theme of the classroom. The foot swing and abacus was a great success. There is enough space in the center of the desk to write on as well.

Step 1 : Cut 4 pieces of ½” or desired width wood that will function as the legs of the desk. Make end cuts to achieve desired aesthetic preference.The dimensions shown are 18” x 3.5” x 1/2”

Step 2 : Cut 6 pieces of wood into 36” x 3.5” x ½”. These will function as the legs of the desk.

Step 3 : Using a ⅝” forstner bit, drill 6 holes 2 inches apart from each other on every piece of the legs starting from the bottom. Drill a single hole into every member on the opposite side of the previously drilled holes.

Step 4 : Using a palm router, router every edge of all the pieces of wood to get rid of any sharp edges.

Step 5 : Sand all pieces of wood with an orbital sander or preferred sanding method to achieve the same smoothness, color, and to get rid of any burn marks that may have occurred from routing on all pieces

Step 6 : Generously apply “Howard’s Feed-N- Wax” to every piece of wood making sure to evenly spread so that there is no color deviation in the final result. Once applied use a clean rag and wipe every piece of wood to remove excess wax.

Step 7 : Allow pieces to dry and reapply wax as needed.

Step 8 : Begin assembly of the base using a pneumatic brad gun. Align 2 pieces of the base and place small blocks in between them on opposite ends. Nail the pieces together then use wood screws for extra support.

Step 9 : Place a single piece of the legs into the base making sure it is directly aligned in the center. Using the nail gun attach the piece and then proceed to run wood screws through it so that it does not move under load. Repeat steps 8-9 to create the second part of the base

Step 10 : Attach both sections of the base with a single cross brace in the middle.

Step 11 : Nail a 2” long piece of wood with a 35 degree cut on both ends to act as a support inside the legs and prevent flexing when under load.

Step 12 : Cut a section for the top of the desk 42” x 30” then proceed to sand, route, and wax as needed.

Step 13 : Final assembly can now be started by attaching the 4 remaining members of the legs onto the bottom of the desk. Make sure to attach the members of the legs running a 3” carriage bolt through the single hole at the top of the legs onto the the hole at the bottom of the desk top.

Step 14 : Assemble the base and top of the desk by placing 4 3” carriage bolts through the holes and tightening the wingnuts to keep everything in place. Adjustability can now be changed moving the carriage bolts from hole to hole depending on desired height.

Fig 3: There were two fidget spinners (red) placed on the desk, one flat on the surface (shown) and one on the side of the desk (fig 8), making it easier to grip. The small rolling wheel is another device to play with that can be rolled in every direction.

Fig 4: The abacus is for both work and play; the beads can be moved to solve math problems or just for fun.

Fig 5: This is a functional turn table that can be turned on and off and played with by placing a finger on the surface to slow the spinning disk down.

Fig 6: These wooden circles are just about a fingers length apart and spin when fingers are weaved through them.

Fig 7: This metal bar contains nuts and wingnuts that can be twisted the entire span of the metal rod. There is alos bottons taken from a video game controller on top of one of the wooden blocks

Fig 8: This box contains a small foam pad similar to the idea of a worry stone, and is meant to be rubbed and pressed on to relieve stress.

Fig 9: The foot swing is good a way to get more than just hand fidgeting

The Fidget Toys

All toys were tested for sound and if they were too loud, modifications were made to quiet the toys.

They all have an aesthetic appeal that matches each other, the desks in the classroom and the colors of the school.

This desk is very durable and should require hardly any maintenance. The wood is strong and the design is structurally sound. That being said, all projects have small flaws. This tells you what to look out for.

The Stand Up Fidget Desk is utilized by approximately 10 students during a 7-hour school day, 5 days a week. The desk is primarily in use during the school year from September to June, with the exception of vacations. The desk is function-able as a typical scholarly desk with the added benefit of having silent fidgeting components for both hand and foot use. The desk has the capability of being adjusted to different height levels to accommodate the user. The fidgeting components of the desk are used to focus the user’s attention during class without causing distractions to other students. The production of the desk was done using a woodworking shop, and with donated free wood. Many hours were spent building this desk. The first stage was to build a sturdy, adjustable desk which will be done in the woodworking shop. The second stage is to build the top of the desk with the fidget toys. This was not free (look at costs) and is fine-tuned and professional looking. The decisions for what to put on the desk took the team a while, with a lot of brainstorming and deliberation. The final decisions for the desk are as follows; the top of the desk will contain a plethora of things, including 2 fidget spinners, a handmade abacus, a long bolt containing some nuts and wingnuts that spin, and some buttons and joysticks taken from a play station 2 controller. The underside of the desk contains a bungee foot swing. The next steps to be taken in this project will progress when the addition of new toys will need to be added due to the wear and tear of the fidget toys as they are used as intended.

This project is designed to maximize focus for students with ADHD. So as the fidget industry develops more toys to help students with there learning disabilities, more things can be added to the desk. Some simple additions that can be made are giant rubber bands on the sides of the desk for students to bounce there legs off of. Another addition, if necessary, can be a stool.